College Concerns: Understanding the FAFSA form

Complete the FAFSA form every year you're in college

The FAFSA form allows the federal government to calculate the amount of money you're able to borrow and are expected to pay for college.

FAFSA stands for Free Application for Federal Student Aid. In order to be eligible for any federal financial aid, whether it’s one of several types of loans or a grant, you must fill out the form every year you're in college.

Once your FAFSA is processed, your college or university will review the resulting Student Aid Report (SAR) and inform you of your loan eligibility through a Financial Aid Award.

If you're eligible to obtain aid, you'll need to sign a promissory note, which is a binding legal document listing the conditions under which you are borrowing money and the terms under which you agree to repay your loan.

Private student loans can be used to fill the gap between the federal aid you receive and the total cost of your education. If you're planning to take out a private student loan, make sure you do your research and find one that offers the best rates and terms for your situation.

If you do not have a strong credit history or you don't have one at all, you might want to consider having a parent or guardian with a good credit history co-sign your student loan. This may help you get a lower interest rate. Remember to be conservative when applying for student loans and only borrow what you absolutely need to cover your educational expenses.

For more information about the FAFSA form and federal financial aid, visit www.fafsa.ed.gov.

Grant

A type of need-based financial aid that a student does not have to repay.

Additional resources

Important Notice

You're continuing to another website

You're continuing to another website that Bank of America doesn't own or operate. Its owner is solely responsible for the website's content, offerings and level of security, so please refer to the website's posted privacy policy and terms of use.

Advertising Practices

We strive to provide you with information about products and services you might find interesting and useful. Relationship-based ads and online behavioral advertising help us do that.

Here's how it works: We gather information about your online activities, such as the searches you conduct on our Sites and the pages you visit. This information may be used to deliver advertising on our Sites and offline (for example, by phone, email and direct mail) that's customized to meet specific interests you may have.

If you prefer that we do not use this information, you may opt out of online behavioral advertising. If you opt out, though, you may still receive generic advertising. In addition, financial advisors/Client Managers may continue to use information collected online to provide product and service information in accordance with account agreements.

Also, if you opt out of online behavioral advertising, you may still see ads when you sign in to your account, for example through Online Banking or MyMerrill. These ads are based on your specific account relationships with us.